Live crickets and worms cause commuter chaos
New Yorkers stuck on train with insects and no air conditioning - and other tall tales
Our pick of the strange stories from around the world.
A bug in the transport system
A woman sparked chaos on New York's Subway transport system after being harassed by a group of teens. The woman, who was trying to sell boxes of live crickets and worms to commuters, reacted by throwing several boxes of the insects across the train. In the ensuing panic, another commuter pulled the emergency brake, stopping the train on the Manhattan Bridge and shutting off the air conditioning. Passengers were stuck in the carriage, unable to escape the heat or the crickets and worms, for more than half an hour.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Woman cuts off arm and foot for insurance
A Vietnamese woman has reportedly paid a friend to cut off her foot and part of her arm in order to collect insurance money. Identified only as Ly Thi N, the 30-year-old admitted to police that she paid her friend £1,700 to remove the limbs before claiming she had been hit by a train. The insurance payout would have totalled more than £113,000.
Oregon woman on supermarket rampage
A 43-year-old woman from Glenwood, Oregon, has been arrested after she crashed her SUV through the front doors of a supermarket, drove up and down an aisle and then out through the rear doors of the building. Workers at the store say the woman became enraged when she was unable to purchase more than $2,000 (£1,500) worth of gift cards early on Tuesday morning. She was arrested at her home.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Puffed rice and yoga: inside the collapsed tunnel where Indian workers await rescue
Speed Read Workers trapped in collapsed tunnel are suffering from dysentery and anxiety over their rescue
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Gaza hospital blast: What the video evidence shows about who's to blame
Speed Read Nobody wants to take responsibility for the deadly explosion in the courtyard of Gaza's al-Ahli Hospital. Roll the tape.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Giraffe poo seized after woman wanted to use it to make a necklace
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Helicopter sound arouses crocodiles
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Woman sues Disney over 'injurious wedgie'
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Emotional support alligator turned away from baseball stadium
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Europe's oldest shoes found in Spanish caves
Tall Tales And other stories from the stranger side of life
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Artworks stolen by Nazis returned to heirs of cabaret performer
It wasn't all bad Good news stories from the past seven days
By The Week Staff Published